Southern California -- this just in

New Mel Gibson tape to be reviewed by detectives

July 12, 2010 | 2:05
pm

A tape released Monday in which actor Mel Gibson apparently acknowledges that he hit the mother of his child will be added to evidence being reviewed in a domestic violence investigation involving the actor.

Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said detectives did not have the tape before, and would be acquiring it this week.

In the recording, released Monday by RadarOnline, Gibson's former girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva recounts an incident in which she says Gibson hit her as she held their baby daughter, a blow that broke the model's teeth. A voice believed to be Gibson's is heard telling the woman she "deserved" it.

An investigation into Gibson began last week, after Grigorieva, a Russian model and the mother of one of Gibson's children, made formal allegations against the actor. Sheriff's officials are not releasing details into the investigation, but say it's expected to be wrapped up by the middle of next month. Their findings will be turned over to the Los Angeles County district attorney's Office, which would then determine if charges will be filed against Gibson.

The tape released Monday is being reviewed along with interviews, and other evidence, authorities said.

"What kind of a man is that? Hitting a woman when she's holding a child in her hands?" Grigorieva is heard saying. "Breaking her teeth twice in the face! What kind of man is that?"

"Oh, you're all angry now! You know what, you … deserved it!" a man believed to be Gibson is heard responding.

A spokesman for Gibson declined to comment Monday afternoon.

Controversy revisited the troubled actor recently with reports that he was recorded using a derogatory term for African Americans. In 2006, the "Lethal Weapon" star unleashed a profanity-laden anti-Semitic tirade, after being stopped on suspicion of drunk driving.

Recently, Gibson's career had shown signs of recovering, most notably with the release of the thriller "Edge of Darkness," the first film the leading man had starred in for years.